Localize UI created with UI Toolkit

Bind UI Toolkit elements to localized strings and assets.

Every localized reference type, such as LocalizedString and LocalizedTexture, is also a UI Toolkit runtime data binding and a UI Toolkit XML (UXML) object. The same type works three ways: as a field in the Inspector window, as a binding authored in UI Builder or UXML, and as a binding created in code. Bound values update automatically when the user switches language.

Prerequisites

Before you start, make sure you have the following:

• A table collection with entries. Refer to Get started with localization.

Bind in UI Builder

To bind a property to a localized value in UI Builder:

1. In UI Builder, select the element, for example a Label.
2. In the Inspector window, right-click (macOS: Ctrl+click) the property to localize, for example Text, and select Add binding.
3. Set the binding type to LocalizedString and pick the table entry.

For asset-typed properties, use the matching type, for example LocalizedTexture for a background image.

Bind in UXML

The reference types are UXML objects, so a binding can live in the UXML itself:

<ui:UXML xmlns:ui="UnityEngine.UIElements" xmlns:loc="Unity.Localization">
    <ui:Label>
        <Bindings>
            <loc:LocalizedString property="text" table="My Strings" entry="greeting" />
        </Bindings>
    </ui:Label>
</ui:UXML>

Bind in code

A binding created in code follows the same pattern as any custom binding:

Label label = root.Q<Label>("title");
LocalizedString binding = new LocalizedString();
binding.SetReference("My Strings", "greeting");
label.SetBinding("text", binding);

Language selection controls

Two built-in controls appear in the UI Builder library under Controls:

• LanguageDropdown: A dropdown that lists the enabled locales.
• LanguageRadioButtonGroup: A group of radio buttons, one per enabled locale.

Both fill themselves from the available locales and apply the user’s choice, with no additional setup code required. Refer to Create a language selection menu.

Additional resources

• Create a language selection menu
• Localize strings
• Localize assets